Deciding charges tough in Detroit case, says prosecutor

DETROIT (AP) -- Prosecutors say there's a good reason why 13 individuals and businesses linked to kickbacks and illegal payments in the scandal surrounding imprisoned former Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick aren't being charged: They could be victims as much as co-conspirators. Kilpatrick, his father Bernard Kilpatrick and three others were indicted last Wednesday on federal corruption charges. Kilpatrick is serving time on state charges while awaiting trial on an earlier federal indictment. "Sometimes it's hard for us to assess -- when you've got these companies who are involved in bribes and extortions -- where they fall on the spectrum of victim to co-conspirator," U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade told the Detroit Free Press for a recent story. "When there are instances where someone is perhaps closer to the victim end of the spectrum . . . we need to rely sometimes on people who participated, just as we rely on drug users in drug cases," she said. McQuade also said people should be understanding about the many months it took to bring the latest charges. "There's always tension," she told The Detroit News. "Being thorough and fair was extremely important, as it always is. The agents and lawyers interviewed hundreds of witnesses, reviewed hundreds of thousands of documents. That takes a fair amount of time." Among those charged is a former Detroit city water chief Victor Mercado, who went on to become general manager of the Bexar Metropolitan Water District in Texas until he was fired last week in the wake of his charges. The Free Press compiled a list of at least 13 known individuals or businesses tied to the corruption case that are not facing charges. Among those not charged is Houston-based Synagro Technologies. Two company representatives were convicted in a corruption case surrounding a Detroit sludge-hauling contract. "From the time that Synagro officials were alerted to the investigation, the company has cooperated fully with the government," spokeswoman Darci McConnell said. Another is Detroit-based contractor Lakeshore Engineering Services, which is accused of paying indicted Kilpatrick associate Bobby Ferguson to get multimillion-dollar municipal contracts. "Lakeshore is in full cooperation with the authorities and has made all information available," spokesman John Truscott said. City Councilman Kwame Kenyatta said he questions the handling of some of those linked to Kilpatrick and his associates. "I think they're getting off light. Some of these other folks should go to jail," Kenyatta said. "Whether these folks have been given immunity or not, they are still . . . milking the citizens of Detroit." Kenyatta said Detroit should sue businesses that gave money to officials, or at least ban them from getting more municipal work. "They shouldn't get a complete pass from the feds," he said. "And if they get a complete pass from the feds, they shouldn't get a complete pass from us." Published: Tue, Dec 21, 2010

––––––––––––––––––––
 Subscribe to the Legal News!
 https://test.legalnews.com/Home/Subscription
Full access to public notices, articles, columns, archives, statistics, calendar and more
Day Pass Only $4.95!
One-County $80/year
Three-County & Full Pass also available